We’re teaming up with fellow food bloggers to host a Brown-Bag Challenge, a month-long initiative to eat consciously and save money by packing a lunch each weekday instead of eating out. Join us here and share what you’re eating on Facebook and Twitter with the hashtag #brownbag.

So an important question has come up during this challenge. If lunch is provided at work — sandwiches ordered for a meeting, a Friday pizza party — does that count for the challenge? Is it cheating if you eat a lunch at work that someone else purchased?

I will say that yes, it does count. If you eat food provided at work, you are still a successful challenge participant. But I say this because I’m guilty. In a 2 hour meeting yesterday that fell smack in the middle of lunch, I ate a sandwich off of the sandwich tray in the conference room. I justified it because I didn’t buy it, and I chose one of the healthier options: raw vegetables and hummus on whole grain bread. I didn’t feel guilty at all.

But did I cheat? What do you think? Have you eaten lunch provided at work during the Brown-Bag Challenge?